Kilifi New Year 2016 – 2017: Welcome to the electric jungle!

Kilifi New Year 2016 is a radically creative two-day explosion of music and tropical beach culture set on the gorgeous banks of Kilifi Creek in Southern Kenya Starting from 4pm Saturday December 31 2016 until 6am Monday January 2 2017. Incredible performers from around East Africa and the world will come together to put on a unique, technicolour show as we celebrate the intersection between African and World electronic music.

Last years event had Berlin Dj Wankelmut of the ‘My head is a jungle’ fame as the headlining act. He was supported by circuswing, Toby2shoes, Dread Steppa, Regan Facon, Dusty Human, Screaming Eagles Bus Company, ROOSTAHS, Olly Barnett, Seth Schwartz, Monolink, gregg Tendwa, Blinky Bill and Sean Fraiser. Check out the video below to see how it went down in 2015-2016.

The highlights of a line-up that includes artists from Kenya, Senegal, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, Netherlands and the UK include Kenya’s own Bengatronics, the return of Seth Schwarz with his unique electric violin combo, an Electrafrique Band reunion, a visit from the legendary Be Svendsen and a broad mix of Kenya’s finest electronic performers.

The event starts on the afternoon of December 31, and you are invited to pitch your tent in Kilifi New Year’s forest camp, have a cold drink at the bar and prepare yourselves for 36 hours of musical mayhem. Performers from around the world will unite to turn the beachside playground into an extraordinary exhibition of colours, lights, installations and stalls of mind-blowing diversity and proportion.

There will be a selection of food stalls, along with vegetarian options, a fully stocked bar for the duration of the event, medical facilities on standby, crafts, curios and boutique goods for sale, and friendly security throughout the festival site. Toilets are eco-friendly (and numerous), while showers on site are fresh and cool (you wouldn’t want a hot one!).

“The Kilifi New Year Festival is an opportunity for us to show some of the world’s best electronic performers to a Kenyan audience as well as showing the world some of the best Kenyan electronic live acts,” says festival director Tom Atkinson. “We are very proud to have the likes of Bengatronics performing a headline set; with their incredibly infectious blend of traditional Kenyan Benga music and electronic music, Bengatronics is one of seven Kenyan acts featured at this years event. Also of special interest are afro-tech junkies Cortega (Senegal) and Umojah (Netherlands) who blend pan-African samples and live collaborations to create some of the best afro-fusion electronica you are likely to hear anywhere in the world. Kenyan exponents of electronic house, techno, alternative, minimal, roots reggae and dancehall will not be left out, so expect something for all tastes!”

“On the international line-up we will be joined by by Burning Man, BOOM and Fusion Festival veterans Be Svendsen, Seth Schwarz and Luke Redford. These artists have a devoted world-wide following who love them for their mystical blend of organic world sounds, groovy techno and classical live instrumentals. What better way to share these amazing performances than on the lovely banks of Kilifi creek right here in Southern Kenya. The audience is always one of the best parts of the show at KILIFI NYE Festival so bring your craziest costumes and inner wild child!”

Ticketing Information
Ksh 6000 per person (approximately USD 60). This includes entrance for both days of the festival as well as two free nights camping.

Please send us each attendant’s full name as it appears on their ID, either by text to 0715660111 if you are already in Kenya, or by email to kilifinye@gmail.com if you are overseas.

Currently redefining the future of Benga music, the Bengatronics recently exploded onto the East African music scene. Blending cutting edge electronics, irresistible Benga rhythms and sweet-as-sugarcane guitar riffs – the outfit seemed to arrive fully formed out of nowhere. Bengatronics is an afrofuturistic journey to discovering the place of Benga music in the electronic space. It borrows heavily from authentic benga styles but introduces digital influences such as real-time remixing, sampling, and improvisation of arrangements in a live band setting.

Seth Schwarz

Seth Schwarz loves melodies and is a classically trained violinist. In his teens he began to merge violin and other classical instruments with the digital sound playground. Seth incorporates elements of House, Techno & Electronica, while improvising with his violin for an emotional imprint and looping it through FX chains creating a unique signature in the virtual world of sound. He has given numerous concerts in Europe, North & Central America and Afrika amongst Amsterdam Dance Event,The BPM Festival, Fusion Festival and Afrika Burn. After his mindblowing Kilifi New Year debut last year, Seth returns for Round 2.

ElectrafriqueBand

Pioneered by Swiss DJ Cortega together with Electrique DJs & The Beat Parade Band from Kenya, Electrafrique finds roots in African rhythms and musical traditions, adding a contemporary urban/futuristic electronic twist to its groove. This culminates into an experience that identifies solidly as African and resonates with people and dancefloors in all corners of the world, and Electrafrique have brought their unique magic to more than 15 countries across four continents.

Be Svendsen

Be Svendsen aka Lasse Bruhn Svendsen produces an organic, melodic and nomadic style of groovy techno, which paints tonal stories that invoke the primal parts of your feral imagination. While exploring a myriad of styles and musical traditions, Be’s live show-downs have developed into a melting pot of hypnotic desert-circus-shaman-cowboy-techno, incorporating elements of vocals, teased field-recordings, nostalgia-provoking samples and live instruments, mixed up with the meditative qualities of repetition. Expect the unexpected!

Umojah Sound System

Umojah Sound System was started in 2016 by members Chiggy Parmar, Jay Shaka, Rigmasta Joe, Sir Henry & Dread Steppa. It is the first reggae / dub style sound system built in Kenya. After spending several years pushing the roots and culture movement in Kenya they decided it was time to build and deliver the conscious vibes over the mighty sound system.

Cortega

Originally from Switzerland, Cortega has seen his reputation grow as a DJ on the Afrobeat and House scenes in the USA, Nairobi and, currently, in Senegal. He has performed at major clubs across the region and electronic music events around the world. Cortega was also a pioneer of the Kenyan arts collective Electrafrique, and his performance at Kilifi New Year 2016 represents something of a homecoming.

Luke Redford

Fresh from a crowd-pleasing performance at Rocking The Daisies in South Africa, Luke Redford returns to the Kilifi New Year line-up. Originally from Switzerland, Luke has found the sweet spot between deep house, techno and electronica and will be sure to get you grooving on the dancefloor. Luke’s musical journey is all about collecting music from all over the world, arranging it into a dense mix of soundscapes, noises patterns and melodies that unfold to a mesmerizing mix.

Umoja

The sunshine duo from the rainy Netherlands, Umoja, is an organic evolution between two humble groove aficionados whose paths crossed over half a decade ago. They are dedicated to combine electronic productions with a perfect understanding of world rhythms. Their music presents an expression of their love for experimentation with African, South American and exotic traditions.

Gregg Tendwa, Eddie Grey and Makadem

Gregg Tendwa is a multimedia artist, freethinker, and afrofuturist questioning and establishing the future of African identity. He explores social reality through music, photography, fashion, food, stories and games and ardently opposes anything authoritarian. His djing, producing, and remixing style has been described as afro-cosmic-archeology, and he blends Afrohouse, Afrofunk, soul, Afrobeat, Highlife and experimental electronica. Makadem is one of Kenya’s most prominent contemporary artists. His songs speak of the fluid nature of African culture, and he’s a specialist in Benga music. Eddie Grey is a Kenyan jazz guitarist, performer and composer. Together, these three form a potent mix!

Dread Steppa

Dread Steppa A.K.A Sheel Dread is a DJ / Producer / Musician / Graphic Designer and Artist hailing from Narobi, Kenya. Originally from Leicestershire, UK he has absorbed the Caribbean nature of the Midlands and has been engulfed by its vibrant sound system culture. Dread steppa is a member of Kenya’s premier Dub / Electronic band “Asili Dub” and also a Co-director of S.M.P Kenya, a collaborative events and production based company which organises various events within the country in an effort to help promote lesser known genres of music.

Lucky Birdi

An explorer of electronic soundscapes, Lucky Birdi is resident DJ at Gipsy’s bar in Nairobi. His intricate, tapestried sets will lift you up and then lay you gently back on the dancefloor.

Enchan

Enchan is a deep house spiritualist with a techy groove and an electronic storyteller, and his DJ sets are laid out to reflect that, taking the audience on an enchanted deep and tech house safari. His fusion of acapellas with groovy deep tech records always makes his set one to watch out for. His name, Enchan, is derived from naitobir enchan, which is Maasai for ‘rain maker’.

Chucky

A DJ and producer from Nairobi and a local favourite, Chucky blends minimal, techno, tech house and deep techno to light up any dancefloor.

Pete Rowbots

After swapping a mountain bike for his first pair of record decks aged 17, Pete Rowbots found his musical calling. After moving to Bristol, UK for the “Golden Era” of drum n bass, he quickly honed his skills and record box playing in dingy house parties and dark clubs. Fast forward a few years and he can now be found mostly playing at outdoor parties and festivals in the UK, offering deep, melodic, synthy techno. Originally coming to Kilifi for the Musafir, he has been with the Kilifi New Year team for 4 years helping it grow into a festival worth travelling 4,500 miles for, and this will be his second year gracing the creek with his unique rolling hypnotic sounds.

Check out Images for Kilifi New Year 2015 – 2016 edition in which Wankelmut was the headlining artist